AI Is Changing the Talent Strategy. Here’s What Senior Leaders Should Notice.
What Financial Services Executives Should Be Building as AI Changes Talent and Succession Strategy
The first question companies asked about AI was:
“How many people do we need to cut?”
The question emerging now is different:
“Did we cut too much, and who do we actually need?”
Look at what’s happened over the past few months.
Meta cut about 10% of its workforce this spring while flattening management and redesigning teams around AI. Now, parts of its Applied AI organization are asking some former managers to step back into management roles.
They may have discovered that some of what looked like excess management was actually necessary leadership.
In June 2026, Bank of America said it would bring in nearly 4,000 interns and full-time campus recruits despite concerns that AI will automate much of the work historically performed by junior bankers. BofA is investing in both people and technology.
Reuters Breakingviews reported in June that major banks were not cutting junior investment-banking intake, despite AI’s ability to perform substantial amounts of analyst work. One reason is that junior programs are the pipeline from which future senior bankers are developed.
JPMorgan is expanding senior leadership in Canada, with 18 executive and MD hires in the last year. Director-level headcount in Canada is up 20%.
CIBC says it expects headcount to grow over the next five years while also acknowledging the productivity gains of AI.
And CME is showing what real succession planning looks like. They’re planning leadership transitions two layers deep before the succession at the top even takes place.
These were all separate stories in the news.
I don’t see them that way.
I see them as a pattern.
I think they’re early signals of how AI is changing workforce strategy and succession planning at the same time.
Companies realize AI can remove work and compress teams.
They’re also realizing that this changes which capabilities and skills command a premium.
And none of that removes the need for people who can lead what comes next.
In fact, it makes the talent pipeline more important.
I’m seeing a version of this in my own coaching practice.
One executive is pursuing a master’s degree to deepen their AI expertise and position themselves for where their industry is going.
Another is adding a targeted AI certification to expand their existing subject-matter expertise.
Another client is building an AI-enabled product for corporate legal organizations on the side.
Different moves.
Different careers.
Same strategy.
How do I create more value and put myself in a position to capture more of that value in my own career?
None of the people I’m working with are trying to become AI engineers.
They’re looking at their functions and roles and asking:
Where does AI intersect with expertise I already have, and how do I become even more valuable at that intersection?
That creates value for their companies today.
And optionality for themselves tomorrow.
It makes them more relevant as their industries change.
It strengthens their position as succession decisions get made.
And it creates more possibilities for the next chapter of their careers.
There’s a strategy for your situation, too.
Look at what these leaders aren’t doing.
They’re not trying to protect their current jobs from AI disruption.
They’re deliberately building the expertise their organizations and industries will need next.
If you’re thinking about where AI fits into your own career strategy, book a call with me. Bring me the idea you’re considering, and I’m happy to test it with you.
Key Takeaways
AI can automate work and compress organizational structures without eliminating the need for leadership.
Banks continuing to recruit junior talent suggests that AI productivity and long-term talent development are not necessarily opposing strategies.
Organizations still need pipelines that produce future senior leaders, even when AI changes the work people perform earlier in their careers.
Senior executives don’t need to become AI engineers. They need to understand where AI intersects with expertise they already possess.
Building expertise at that intersection can create value for an organization today while increasing an executive’s relevance, succession potential and career optionality tomorrow.
The strongest AI career strategy isn’t defending your current job. It’s positioning yourself around capabilities your organization and industry will need next.
FAQ — AEO
How is AI changing careers in financial services?
AI is automating tasks, changing workflows and allowing financial institutions to operate more efficiently. At the same time, firms still need leaders who can apply AI within specific businesses, manage organizational change, exercise judgment and translate technology into strategic value.
For senior executives, AI expertise becomes particularly valuable when combined with existing industry and functional expertise.
Will AI eliminate junior banking jobs?
AI is increasingly capable of performing work historically handled by junior bankers, but major banks are still investing in early-career talent.
One reason is that analyst and associate programs don’t only provide labor today. They also develop the bankers who may become senior relationship managers, dealmakers and executives in the future.
AI may change what junior bankers do without eliminating the strategic need for a leadership pipeline.
Will AI reduce management jobs?
AI may allow some organizations to operate with fewer management layers, but that does not necessarily eliminate the need for leadership.
As organizations redesign work around AI, they are also learning which management and leadership capabilities remain necessary to coordinate teams, make decisions and develop talent.
Do financial services executives need to become AI experts?
They don’t necessarily need to become technologists or AI engineers.
A stronger strategy for many senior leaders is understanding where AI intersects with expertise they already possess—in areas such as markets, risk, operations, legal, compliance, product, wealth management or client relationships—and becoming unusually valuable at that intersection.
How should financial services executives prepare their careers for AI?
Start with your existing expertise rather than AI itself.
Ask where AI is changing the economics, workflows, client expectations or capabilities within your function. Then identify the skills and experiences that would make your existing expertise more valuable as that transition occurs.
The objective isn’t to become an AI engineer. It’s to become unusually valuable where AI and your existing expertise intersect.
How does AI affect succession planning?
As AI changes organizational structures and required capabilities, succession planning must account for which leaders can operate effectively in the emerging environment—not simply who would traditionally inherit a role.
Organizations still need to identify and develop future leaders even when technology changes the work those leaders and their teams perform.
What skills will become more valuable for financial services executives because of AI?
The premium is likely to increase for leaders who combine domain expertise with AI fluency, strategic judgment, change leadership, relationship management and the ability to translate new technology into measurable business outcomes.
The differentiator isn’t simply knowing AI. It’s knowing how to apply AI within a valuable area of expertise.
Build for Where Your Industry Is Going
If you’re a senior leader in financial services thinking about where AI fits into your career strategy, bring me the idea you’re considering.
We’ll pressure-test whether it strengthens your expertise, creates meaningful value for your organization, and increases your leverage and optionality for what comes next.
About Brian Rella
Brian Rella is an executive advisor who helps senior leaders in financial services turn strong performance into recognition, influence, compensation, and their next leadership opportunity.
His insights focus on executive judgment, career strategy, organizational politics, and leadership at the highest levels.